Fluid regulators



May 24, 1960 Y. coNAN 2,937,623

FLUID REGuLAToRs Filed Jan. s. 195e 4 sheets-sheet x www@ c @Tl/mmATToPNEvs Y. CONAN FLUID REGULATORS May 24, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 FiledJan. 9, 1958 n y 4 #L/f H P15. .J a .l 5 4 a J ...myn/Mm M, /hb F N .u.d /l a /NVENTOP wes CONAN ATTOPNEVS May 24, 1960 Y. CONAN FLUIDREGuLAToRs 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 9, 1958 J In INV/Emo? Yves CONANATTOFPA/E VS May 24, 1960 Y. CONAN 2,937,623

FLUID REGULATORS Filed Jan. 9, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 1 ///ll| Il cf- NJ4 .5a l h /nvenor /YES CONAN United States Patent FLUID REGULATORS YvesConan, Enghien, France, assignor to Bronzavia S.A., Courbevoie, France,a French company Filed Jau. 9, 1958, Ser. No. 707,998

7 Claims. (Cl. 121-42) The present invention relates to regulators moreparticuarly for regulating the inlet device controlling the supply ofmotive fluid to a machine (for example an air turbine) which drivesanother machine (for example, a dynamo (alternator, or pump) whichmustrotate at constant or substantially constant speed notwithstandingvariations in the load. The object of the invention is to provideimprovements in this type of regulator.

. The regulator embodying the invention, which is of the type having alluid relay comprising driving means for controlling said inlet deviceof `the machine to be regulated, a control uid distributor connected tothe driving means for supplying the control fluid to the latter, andcontrol means which are responsive to the speed of rotation of themachine to be regulated and actuate the fluid distributor and areoperatively connected to the machine to be regulated, is characterizedin that its constituent parts, namely the distributor, the driving meansfed by the distributor and the control means for the distributor, aregrouped in a. common housing so as to form a compact unit capable ofbeing mounted and dismouuted in one piece relative to the machine to beregulated; whereby the passageways connecting the distributor to thedriving means are as short as possible and the means constitutingthereaction linkage (feed-back of the driving means to the distributor) arealso as short as possible, which results in great sensitivity, greatprecision and rapid response of the apparatus.

In a preferred embodiment, the uid regulator has the followingimprovements and combinations thereof:

(a) The driving means comprise a cylindrical chamber which is formed inthe regulator housing and is provided with a diametral wall; pivotablein the chamber in a duid-tight manner is a double blade rigid with ashaft disposed in the axis of the chamber, this double blade dividing,in co-operation with said wall, the cylindrical chamber into fourcompartments which communicate with the distributor `in groups of twodiametrically opposed compartments.

(b) The shaft of the double blade extends through a cover closing thecylindrical chamber and carries a device such as a lever adapted tocontrol, through the medium of a suitable transmission, the inlet deviceof the machine to be regulated.

(c) The distributor comprises: a cylinder recess whose axis ispreferably at 90 to the axis of the cylindrical chamber of the doubleblade; a fixed tube or sleeve having annular recesses and held in fixedposition in a Huid-tight manner in said cylindrical recess; anintermediate sleeve having annular recesses and axially movable in thetube, its movement being a function of the movement of the double blade;and an innerpiston or slide which have annular recesses, slides in theintermediate sleeve and is actuated by the control means responsive tothe speed of the machine to be regulated.

(d) The shaft of the double blade extends into the cylindrical recess ofthe distributor and carries an eccentric crank pin engaged without playin a recess in the intermediate sleeve so as to impart longitudinalmovement to this sleeve as a function of the angular movement of thedouble blade.

(e) The control means responsive to ythe speed of the machine to beregulated-which comprise a driving rotor actuated by said machine, ballsdriven in rotation by the rotor and a cup having an inclined face onwhich the balls act in opposition to the force exerted by a calibratedspring-are disposed in axial alignment with the longitudinal axis of thepiston or slide of the distributor.

(f) The cup of the control means responsive to the speed of the machineto be regulated is unitary with the slide of the regulator.

(g) A correcting or compensating device responsive to the temperature isprovided for compensating the expansion due to the heating of thehousing and for maintaining constant the overall length, and inconsequence the compression, of the spring of the regulator.

,(h) The compensating device comprises a chamber filled with liquid andclosed by an elastically yieldable diaphragm on which is mounted Ithedevice serving as ,a support for one end of the spring of the regulator.

Further features and advantages of the invention will be apparent fromthe ensuing description of one embodiment of the regulator, withreference to the accompanying drawings, .to which the invention is in noway restricted.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is plan view of a regulator, the cover of the driving meanshaving been removed;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along line lI-II ofV Fig. 4;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along line III-III of yFig. 4 which isat 90 to line II-II; 'f

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV---IV` of Fig. 3; 2

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken along line V-V of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along line VI-VI of Fig.' 2;

Figs. 7 and 8 are half-sectional views, taken along lines VII-VII andVIII-VIII respectively of Fig. v5,

and,

Fig. 9 is a diagram of a unit comprising the regulator, the machine tobe regulated and the feed means for feeding liquid motive tluid to theregulator.

The regulator, the whole of which is indicated byA Yon Pig. 9, isintended to control, through a stop-valve B actuated by the shaft 6 ofthe regulator, the intake of a motive iluid (such as compressed air)entering the duct b and intended to feed a machine C, for example acompressed air turbine. Said machine drives, by means 'of .the pinions cand 25, the rotating parts, hereafter described, of the regulator A. Themachine C furtherV drives a liquid pump 32, which, by meansV of theexhaust pipe 31, sucks up in the tank 30, the liquid, oil for example,and delivers said liquid, through the `duct 33, to

the regulator A. The liquid evacuated from the regulator returns to thetank 30, by means of the discharge duct 34.

As it can be seen on Figs. l to `8, the regulator embodying theinvention comprises a housing 1 in one face of ,which is formed a recessor housing 1a adapted to receive a cup or cylindrical chamber 2 which isordinarily closed by a cover 3 and in which is pivotable about the axisof said chamber, a double blade 4 which is rigid with a hub 5 and with ashaft 6 so that the chamber 2 is constantly divided into two partsseparated from one another in as fluid-tight a manner as possible.

Also provided in the chamber 2 is a diametral xed partition or wall`formed by two partitions 7 extending from `the periphery of the chamberto the hub 5, the arrangement being such that the chamber 2 isconstantly divided into four compartments of variable volume separatedfrom one another in a fluid-tight manner, opposed compartmentscommunicating with one another, through ducts which may be provided inthe cover 3, and with the distributor described hereinafter throughpassageways d and e formed in the housing 1.

The shaft 6 extends 4through the cover 3 and is adapted to receive acontrol member, for example a lever (or crank) which is connected, by alink or any other transmission means, to the inlet control device B ofthe machine C to be regulated.

Provided in the housing 1 is a cylindrical bore or recess 8 having anaxis perpendicular to the axis of the chamber 2. Permanently xed in thisbore is a tube 9 which is yprovided on its outer face with live annularrecesses f, g, h, z', j with which communicate passageways formed in thehousing 1, namely the inlet passageway k communicating with the recess hand with the duct 33 leading to the feeding pump 32 of the regulator,the return passageway l which communicates with the recesses f and j andwith the duct 34 leading lto the tank 30 of said pump, and thepassageways d and e leading to the recesses g and i and to thecompartments of the chamber 2. Radial ports put these various annularrecesses into communication with the inner face of the tube.

Slidably mounted in the tube 9 in a fluid-tight manner isa controlledintermediate sleeve 10 whose outer face is provided with ve annularrecesses m, n, o, p, q which communicate through radial ports with theinner surface of the sleeve and which co-operate with the radial portsin the tube 9. The sleeve 10 has, at its inner end, an aperture in whichis engaged without play an eccentric cranltpin 11 carried by a shaft 12rigid with the hub 5.

When the unit comprising the elements 4, 5, 6, pivots, the sleeve 10 isdisplaced in one direction or the other, axially of the tube 9 andvaries the effective opening of the radial ports in this tube.

Slidably mounted in the sleeve 10 is the distributor piston or slide 13whose periphery comprises three annular distributing recesses r, s, tarranged to co-operate with the radial ports of the sleeve 10.

The distributor slide 13 is hollow and encloses a return spring 14 whichtends to shift it in the direction of the rotor controlling theregulation, described hereinafter. One end of the spring 14 bearsagainst a cap 15 which, through the medium of a ball 16, exerts an axialthrust on the end 13a of the slide 13, whereas the other end of thespring bears against a flange on a tapped sleeve 17 which is heldstationary as concerns rotation by a suitable guiding arrangement and inwhich is engaged an adjusting screw 18 which permits regulating thecompression of the spring 14, that is, the speed at which the machine tobe regulated must run.

The end 13a of the slide is in the form of a cup having a substantiallyfrusto-conical form which the cup 19 of a driving head 20 surrounds, thedriving head 20 having a shaft 20a which is supported by anti-frictionbearings, such as ball lbearings 21 and 22, in a recess 23 in alignmentwith the recess 8, the cup 19 rotating in a thrust ball bearing 24.

At its outer end, the shaft 20a carries a driving gear 25 to permitdriving the rotating elements of the regulator fby means of the gear cof the machine C to be regulated, whereas the driver 20 is arranged todrive in rotation the balls 26 which bear against the cup 19 and againstthe frusto-conical face of the end 13a, the arrangement being such thatthe distributor slide is biased toward the right (as viewed in Fig. 3)in opposition to the action of the return spring 14 under the effect ofthe centrifugal force exerted by the balls 26.

To avoid faulty regulation due to a rise in temperature of the body ofthe regulator (which frequently occurs in practice), the adjusting rodor screw 18 is combined 4 with a correcting or compensating arrangementcomprising a chamber 18a which is filled with oil and closed by adiaphragm 18b welded on a collar 18e which is rigid with the rod 18 asconcerns axial movement of the latter.

The diaphragm is maintained clamped between the tube 9 and the end cap18d of the housing 1, and it receives the thrust of the spring 14through a shoulder on the rod 18 which acts on the collar 18e.

When the housing 1 lengthens as result of expansion due to the heat, theoverall length of the spring 14 also lengthens and the compression ofthe spring decreases. But the oil in the chamber 18a also increases involume and, through the medium of the diaphragm 18b, shifts the collar18e which acts in turn on the spring 14 through the medium of the rod 18and :the tapped sleeve 17 and causes the spring to resume its initialcompression.

The balls, which are thrown outwardly by centrifugal force, thereforeconserve the same position and thus the speed remains constant.

The chamber 18a is filled and drained through two apertures which areformed in the cap 18d and are closed by screws 18e.

In a few words, the above described regulator works as follows:

When the machine C runs at the desired speed, thc sleeve 10 and thepiston 13 are, for example, in the posi tion shown on Figs. 2, 3, 7 and8. In said position, the passageways d, e are isolated from the ducts kand I because the ribs between the annular recesses r, s, t of thepiston 13 obturate the radial ports in communication with the annularrecesses g, n and p, i.

If the machine C accelerates, the balls 26 thrust back the piston 13which (in the new position) opens the communication, through the annularrecess s, between h, o and p, i, so that motive liquid coming from thepump 32 is admitted, from the duct k, to the duct e and enters in twoopposite compartments of the chamber 2. Simultaneously, the two otheropposite compartments of the chamber 2, connected to the duct d are putin communication with the duct I (and the discharge pipe 34) inconsequence of the communication between g, n and m, f, through theannular recess r of the piston 13.

Thus, the double blade 4 rotate in the direction corresponding to theclosing of the stop valve B and thc machine C slows down.

But, in consequence of the rotational movement of the blade 4, theeccentric crankpin 11 moves the sleeve 10, so that the radial ports ofsaid sleeve are again obturated by the annular ribs, between the annularrecesses r, s, t. of the piston 13, so that the movement of the bladebecomes stopped for limiting the closing motion of the stop valve B.

lf the speed of the machine C decreases, the piston 13 moves to the leftand the compartments of the chamber 2 are connected with the ducts k andl (that is to say respectively with the pump 32 and the discharge pipe34) but in the opposite direction (with respect to the rst direction) inorder to increase the opening of the stop valve B.

Although specific embodiments of the improvements of the invention havebeen described, many modifications and changes may be made thereinwithout departing from the scope of the invention as dened in theappended claims.

What I claim is:

l. In a uid regulator for a machine to be regulated and having: ahousing; driving means having a rotatable shaft and disposed in thehousing for controlling said machine; a fluid distributor fordistributing fluid under pressure disposed in the housing, connectableto a source of fluid under pressure and connected to the driving meansso as to supply uid under pressure to the driving means; control meansdisposed in the housing, responsive to the speed of said machine,operatively connected to said machine and operatively connected to thedistributor for controlling the latter in accordance with the speed ofsaid machine; elastically yieldable return means acting in opposition tothe means responsive to speed; said distributor comprising: acylindrical recess the wall of which communicates through kpassagewaysformed in the housing with the driving means and with the source ofiluid under pressure; a fixed cylindrical tube having an outer facewhich is in contact with the inner face of the cylindrical recess andwhich has outer annular recesses which are in communication with saidpassageways, said annular recesses communicating, through radial portsformed in the wall of the tube, with the inner face of the latter; anintermediate cylindrical sleeve axially movable in the tube andoperatively connected to the shaft of the driving means, the outer faceof the sleeve being in contact with the inner face of the tube andhaving annular recesses which are capable of communicating with theradial ports of the tube and which communicate through radial portsformed in the lwall of the sleeve with the inner face of the latter;and' a cylindrical slide slidably mounted in the sleeve, having itsouter cylindrical face in contact with the inner cylindrical face of thesleeve and having annular recesses which are in communication withcertain of said radial ports formed in the sleeve, said slide beingoperatively connected to the control means responsive to the speed ofsaid machine.

2. A iluid regulator as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shaft comprisesan eccentric crankpin and the sleeve comprises a recess in which thecrankpin is engaged, whereby pivoted movement of said shaft imparts alongitudinal movement to the sleeve.

3. A iluid regulator as claimed in cla-im 1, wherein said meansresponsive to the speed of said machine comprise: a rotor which has adriving head, is co-axial With the distributor and is operativelyconnected to said machine; balls disposed in such manner as to be drivenby the rotor; a cup having an inclined face disposed in axial alignmentwith the rotor in front of the driving head and operatively connected tothe slide and so constructed and arranged that the balls driven inrotation by the driving head are capable of acting under the effect ofcentrifugal force on the cup axially of the cup in opposition to theaction of said elastically yieldable return means.

4. A fluid regulator as claimed in claim 3, wherein said cup is integralwith said slide.

5. A fluid regulator as claimed in claim 1, whereinV said elasticallyyieldable return means comprise: a helical spring which s disposedinside the slide which is hollow, one end of the spring exerting anaxial pressure on the slide; a screw-threaded sleeve which is disposedinside the slide and against which the other end of the spring bears;and an adjusting screw journalled in said housing and screw-threadedlyengaged in the screwthreaded sleeve.

6. A uid regulator as claimed in claim 5, further comprisingcompensating means responsive to heat and adapted to act on said screwso as to compensate for the elongation due to heat, of the housing andto thus maintain the force exerted by the spring constant.

7. A uid regulator as claimed in claim 5, further comprising anon-rotative support rigid with the adjust- -ing screw as concerns axialmovement; an elastically yieldable diaphragm whose central portion isconnected to said support and whose periphery is connected to thehousing, the diaphragm being disposed in the housing so as to dene witha wall formed in the latter a chamber adapted to receive a liquid whoseexpansion under the elect of the heating up of the regulator exerts anaxial thrust on the adjusting screw in the direction toward the spring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,994,121 Collingham Mar. 12, 1935 2,241,077 Thoma May 6, 1941 2,400,418Hofbauer May 14, 1946 2,513,660 Martin et al. `luly 4, 1950 2,715,891Rodeck et al Aug. 23, 1955 2,715,892 Rodeck et al Aug. 23, 19552,769,399 Gratzmuller Nov. 6, 1956 2,809,596 Sullwold et al. Oct. 15,1957

